I had to take a moment and write praises, about what the Lord did this week.
And when I thought on it, what the Lord has done this week, I wanted to share two praises I remembered from the past, also.
This is a praise for this week.
I’m a truly terrible wife. I can spend money or give money and forget to bother to go to the store to get anything for the house. That is the truth. My husband is the dearest man who covers me with such love, because he certainly endures and is also pretty much the same way.
I was feeling very repentant to my husband, as I had used or given away all that we had this payday. I felt so badly for neglecting to look after my own home with my husband, and get something for our own house, and using all the payday’s money for other things.
He didn’t seem to mind at all, and was a participant in the matter himself, in many ways.
I don’t share this to say, look at us. We aren’t always too bright if the truth be known. But we had a lovely time, and did what we could, but did not save back money for the week, and when it was all gone, I realised I had not bought groceries. And the fridge was pretty much empty after we had a wonderful lunch of eggs.
Here is the praise.
No one knew we did this. No one had a clue of our empty fridge. We hardly think of it ourselves, except it had gotten empty after spending all of payday.
We don’t mention such a thing and were not ever hungry. The time between me realising I had spent out our pay cheque, and the empty refrigerator, to the next pay period for me, went without a ruffle.
We knew we were spent out. I mention it now, because it is over and payday is here, and it was so sweet.
The time between the running out of money and my being able to get my own pay was not long. But the first evening, when it ran out pretty much and the fridge was on empty, someone called and said they had made us dinner and could they come by? Sure. What a lovely dinner they brought by to us!
They knew I was working late and felt led by the Lord to do this.
The next day, of being on empty in the fridge our kids called and ask us to a large delicious dinner. People could overlook the miracle in this. No one ever calls us and says can I bring a dinner by. There is absolutely no reason to do so, and this friend felt led to do so by the Lord. She was doing it because she knew I was working late at home, and felt to do so. She knew nothing of the empty fridge situation. We hardly had thought of it.
And our kids, though lovely and kind to us, don’t call us everyday to come over to dinner. It is a special time for them to do so. And the very next day after the dinner from our friend coming by, we got a call and invitation to come to dinner to our kids, which was so lovely. We didn’t starve, it was a short time and we never went without, but what I saw was the care of the Lord.
The minute we ran out of money and the fridge was bare, dinner was provided divinely, each day, for two days, until the new pay period was arrived.
We never missed a beat and never went without and what was given was very much more special than what we normally would have given ourselves. There was truly an element of special in it.
In giving and using all we had and forgetting about our need of getting groceries, we still never skipped a beat or missed a meal and had better than if we had gotten it ourselves. We received meals that were much lovelier than I ever do make.
On the way to the kids, I apologised again to my husband for my poor money managing and my extremes, though truly he does the same. He said, we have not missed one meal, have we? We hadn’t and I had already registered the same knowing that the Lord had done this. We had truly seen His care.
We knew it was the Lord whose care and love had provided and born witness to Him, as it was Him, and Him showing us His kindness, His care, in seeing this.
We never missed a meal. In fact, we had beautiful dinners served to us as soon as we ran out till the next pay-period, for the two nights.
I thank the Lord for His care. Not because we went without, we didn’t at all.
For that, yes, but for the care of the Lord I saw, and my husband saw. His tender loving care of us, seeing Him in this. Better than I do myself take care of us.
I thank the Lord!
I am put in remembrance, of the many ways through the years we have seen the Lord make Himself known to us in such special ways. I could recount so many things, so many times, so many miracles. And I know others could do the same. The Sweetest Savior caring for us through out the years and for our family.
I’ll share two times in the past.
Years ago we were very poor. We were raising the kids and were often very poor, but tried to serve the Lord. We knew we were His.
There was only one time we did not have dinner or food and had three little children. We had eaten potato tacos in the past, but this time, there was not any dinner.
I ask them to set the table, and told them that the Lord said we would not be without. That was the promise in His Bible to us.
They set the table, and did so knowing we were looking to the Lord for the meal to put on it. We did not mention to people when we were without, and have never felt to do so. When the children finished setting the table for dinner the phone rang.
It was our neighbour. She said, Kathy, I have cooked so much food. I do not have the room for all of it and had no room she said, in her freezer. “Would you please send someone over to get some, I don’t have room for it all”.
We went over and got the food and sat down at the table that the kids had set, and ate the best meal ever. A pot of hot soup, and homemade breads. I praise the Lord!
I can not recount this without tears.
The children saw that evening, in a way not everyone has the great blessing to encounter, the Lord giving to us of His provision. I have heard another Christian brother recount the same type of miracle in their lives, with his children, when they were young. I am sure many people live on the miracles of the Lord’s provision.
One other remembrance, though the truth is, there are so many, one comes after another, and every day is so precious with the Lord in our lives. Just knowing Him is more than I can imagine or ever hope for or think of.
Again, the children were little. We had gone out to get Christmas for the kids, and were with two people who didn’t believe in the Lord, that were with us. My brother and his girlfriend, and we were all out together doing our Christmas shopping.
We ran out of money quickly. We didn’t have the things we needed for Christmas for our kids. I rarely felt anger, that I remember, after I met the Lord, so it was a different feeling to me.
But what was like an anger rose up in me, and something happened that I knew was not my thoughts. I looked around at the shoppers and I said, How is it, that those who don’t serve the Lord have Christmas for their children, and those who serve the Lord, don’t?
And I heard an audible voice spoken in my ear say, “Go home and get your money.”
The hardest part of this all was not believing the Lord had spoken to us, I knew it was the Lord. It was the saying it out loud to those with us who didn’t know the Lord, about going home and getting our money that the Lord had for us there.
I can see how that was a need to go against forces and thoughts to speak it out loud to my husband in front of these people. I said out loud though – The Lord said to go home and get our money. The Christmas money for the kids is at home.
My husband and I left immediately and went home to get our money for the kid’s Christmas. We never ask people for anything or spoke to them when we didn’t have what we needed. Not that that is wrong, but it was something we were never led to do.
On the way home we were so excited. We were very poor. A dollar was a lot. And when we talked we said, what if it is twenty dollars! Thinking how wonderful that would be.
We tried to think of the most we could think of. We said, oh, what if it is fifty dollars! That was the most we could think of, it was so much to us! That is the most we could think of at the time. It was so much to us.
When we got home, on the porch in the windiest area I’ve probably known, was a card on the front porch. We opened it and it said, From Jesus. It had fifty dollars in it.
We got our kids everything we needed for them that Christmas. I knew I would never have to worry about my kids ever, again, on any holiday, if I followed the Lord.
That Christmas was more special than any other I remember. It had all the trimmings I never would have been able to get that make Christmas so special to kids and to everyone. The sweet treats were all there.
At our door was left a box with sweet breads and all the sweets and things for Christmas to make it special. It was the most precious and special and best Christmas we had ever had. And more than we ever had had in the Christmas times before. That we were ever able to buy, with so many special little things that make it so nice for kids and for us.
I praise the Lord and thank the Lord!
I could go on and share and share, so many are the times and ways the Lord has made Himself known in so many special ways, always. Every day, every year, of our lives.
So many times the Lord has showed us His dearest love and care and provision.
I pray this remembrance be a blessing to you all.
I know He shows Himself so special to all of us as we look to Him.
By Kathy Angell
Kathy lives in Portland, OR with her husband of 43 years, Gordon. They serve through Cranberry House, in the Coffee Pot Christian Outreach and Potter’s Wheel. They focus on feeding and clothing folks on the street and prepare and serve about 100 meals at Freedom Foursquare Church, on Sundays. Her joy lies is praising God for the wonderful walk He has given, through His precious Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
